🇺🇸 Yes! Most US universities will offer college credit and even allow you to skip certain classes or requirements. However, this varies between universities, and it is most important that you check these yourself. Oftentimes, you will need to achieve above a certain score to receive credit. For example, I attend Cornell University and I had to achieve a score of 6 or a 7 for my Higher Level (HL) courses to receive credit. (Yes, sadly, I didn’t receive any credit for my SL courses)
- Computer Science – I was able to skip the introductory class and receive full credit.
- Economics – I was able to skip the introductory class and receive full credit.
- Language and Literature – I was able to waive my freshman writing seminar requirement and receive full credit. (Cornell requires first year students to take two writing classes, but I only had to do one instead of two)
College Credit
In total, I received ~12 credits (4 credits for each class). Don’t worry about the specific number of credits though as there is a different system for each school. Also, make sure your university receives your IB scores and awards you credit for it accordingly. You can inquire the academic office of your specific college about this.
IB vs. AP
One sad reality you may learn though is compared to your American peers who have taken AP classes, you will still likely have fewer credits than they have. This is just because the Advanced Placement (AP) program was specifically created with American high school students in mind, so it’s easier to receive credit. This is not to diminish the IB at all though because it is highly regarded as a high school program and many of the skills you learn in IB will make university classes feel easier (and help you do better)! In fact, many of my college friends in the US have told me the IB sounds more stressful and challenging. You should be proud of doing the IB!
🇬🇧 For UK universities, you don’t get college credit for high school courses (including A-Levels), but IB does prepare you well for university-level courses so it feels a bit easier!